STOCKTON - Businesses in San Joaquin County have to pay attention to their bottom lines.

But they also have an opportunity to keep an eye on the financial health of the local charities that help residents make it through tough times.

"It's local businesses and business leaders that provide the life's blood - which is funding - to our nonprofit community," said Andy Prokop, director of United Way of San Joaquin County.

Over the past decade, United Way has funneled $3 million to $4 million annually to the county's nonprofit organizations. Most of the funds go to a core group of about 150 organizations, though in some years checks have been written to upwards of 2,000 organizations. Prokop said the business community makes that possible.

"Without business involvement ... we wouldn't be in business," he said. This is particularly important in the age of government budget cuts, he said.

The partnership between business and nonprofit groups works in different ways. Thousands of employees in the county contribute regularly through automatic payroll deductions. And many businesses encourage employees to volunteer. The United Way's fundraising campaign is helped by business executives on loan. "They are on someone else's payroll, but work in our house."

And businesses large and small help organizing volunteers accomplish a wide range of work in the community - from doling out food to the homeless to building homes.

On any given weekend at one of Habitat for Humanity's homes under construction, teams of volunteers will be hanging sheet rock, painting walls and doing everything in between, said Sherry Dickhoff, office manager.

"It's vital to our projects to have the groups come out, especially (from) the business community," she said.